Lakers’ Frank Vogel encouraged by defensive strides

LOS ANGELES — The archetypal fewer movie sessions of the play presented a tricky situation for manager Frank Vogel: How tin you amusement the Lakers what bully defence looks similar if you don’t person immoderate portion of it?

Maybe it wasn’t rather that extreme, but aft the Lakers gave up astatine slightest 115 points successful their archetypal 5 games of the season, Vogel acknowledged that it was a batch easier conducting Saturday’s movie league aft a 113-101 triumph successful which they held the Cavaliers to 16 points successful the 4th quarter.

“It’s large to beryllium capable to positively reenforce alternatively than amusement corrections always,” Vogel said. “There was a batch of that connected portion the different day. Lot that we inactive request to get better.”

Among the areas that the Lakers improved: their large men played higher connected guards; they challenged amended nether the rim; they contained amended successful one-on-one situations. Vogel besides noted that they boxed retired amended than they have, “even though the rebounds weren’t good.”

On Friday night, the Lakers recapped the crippled saying that passionate confrontations astatine halftime and during timeouts had inspired them to get a small much superior connected the antiaircraft end. Anthony Davis said helium would instrumentality “all the blame” for the team’s spotty connection connected defense.

“It’s benignant of similar my biggest relation connected the squad is to get locked successful defensively,” helium said. “If anybody person antiaircraft questions astir the bigs, it’s connected me. I speech to the guards astir things. The coaches benignant of thin connected maine for antiaircraft purposes. So I instrumentality work for that.”

The Lakers entered the evening ranked No. 27 successful antiaircraft standing (111.0), a acold outcry from their No. 1 decorativeness past play nether Vogel. But aboriginal against the Rockets, they showed a continued trajectory of improvement, keeping Houston to a specified 35 points successful the archetypal half.

Commitment is the key, Davis said.

“Our strategy works. We conscionable person to beryllium committed to doing it,” helium said. “And fto the squad cognize conscionable perpetrate vigor and effort to defense. It’s a mindset, ‘OK, I’m gonna play defense. And I’m gonna bash my job, and immoderate my occupation is, if it leaves my feline open, I cognize the adjacent feline is gonna instrumentality the rotation to screen me, due to the fact that I’m doing my job.’”

Howard misses game

The latest Lakers’ wounded came arsenic a surprise: Vogel said Dwight Howard woke up with stiffness successful his cervix and was a game-time decision. Despite a airy on-court workout astir an hr earlier tip-off, Howard was yet not disposable to play successful his emblematic reserve spot against Houston, 1 of his erstwhile teams. Since the Lakers’ shifted DeAndre Jordan retired of the starting lineup, Jordan played Howard’s emblematic rotation role.

For the 4th consecutive game, Wayne Ellington dressed, but did not play successful the rotation. Vogel said Ellington played good successful Saturday’s practice, but the Lakers privation him to signifier astatine slightest erstwhile much earlier helium returns to the level successful a game. Ellington has nursed a hamstring wounded since the preseason.

Long-term, Vogel said Trevor Ariza and Talen Horton-Tucker are inactive a ways out. Though Horton-Tucker is scheduled to beryllium revaluated successful mid-November, a idiosyncratic with cognition of his workouts said that it whitethorn inactive beryllium 3 to 4 weeks until he’s capable to play with his surgically repaired close thumb. Vogel didn’t connection an authoritative timeline for either player.

“I cognize they’re inactive successful the model of not disposable to america yet,” helium said. “So I don’t adjacent cognize what the timeline is, but they’re some moving hard connected their rehab. Obviously I spot them doing that, but I don’t person details connected wherever they’re at.”